


Venomous Touch (Remus/Janus or Deceit)

by PJGamerGirl



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Cheesy, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders Being Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Drama & Romance, Elves, Gen, Heartbreaking, How Do I Tag, M/M, Monsters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:22:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24543025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PJGamerGirl/pseuds/PJGamerGirl
Summary: Remus is out on another one of his crazy adventures. This time however, he chooses to explore an area that was long ago abandoned quite a few miles north of his family's kingdom. Inside this town awaits a serpentine beast who is starving for a good meal to satisfy his hunger when he stumbles upon Remus. What will happen? . . .("Wait. What do you mean he's going to try and seduce the monster?")
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Logic | Logan Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Comments: 2
Kudos: 28





	1. Off to Adventure

**Author's Note:**

> These may be short or long, depends on how I'm feeling when I'm writing. I'm also going to put more effort into proofing these while I go and try to write for my other story thing. Okay, continue on.

It was a pretty average day at the palace. Roman was busy writing a speech to their subjects while Remus’ father prepares a ceremony for said subjects for some odd reason. Remus on the other hand had another, better way to spend his day and he was intent on having his twin brother join him.

“Heyo!” Re screamed into his brother’s ornate bedroom. It was neatly decorated in red and golden tones that went well with Roman’s egotistical lifestyle. It however, contrasted with Remus’ preferred colors of green and silver. They were polar opposites, but Remus didn’t care.

Roman groaned and pressed his face into the palm of his hand while the other clutched tightly to a feathered stylus dipped in ink. “Yes, Remus?” He asked dully while slowly moving his head upwards to gaze upon Remus standing in the doorway.

Remus was clothed in royal attire, but it was much more ragged and dark next to Roman’s. Tassels hung everywhere and a green sash marked his royal lineage across his torso. He had a horribly groomed mustache and his hair was a mess since he never brushed it. Don’t even get Roman started on the smell that followed the duke everywhere, it could be enough to kill five grown men who worked with the sewage at its worst.

The duke opened his mouth as another “Heyo!” escaped his lips.

“Remus, I heard you the first time, what do you need?” Roman grunted, becoming irritated with his twin’s antics.

“Oh, nothing brother~” Remus cooed while prancing over, his ornaments and sheathed sword batting against his hips. “I just came with a small offer.”

“Oh, not aga-”

“Come on an adventure with me, brother!” Remus cried, outstretching his arms to wrap around Roman, but the red and golden twin quickly batted Remus’ dirty hands away.

“Certainly not!”

“Awww. . .” Remus whined, “Why?” He shoved Roman aside and plopped his butt down on the surface of his brother’s desk, crumpling and ruining the papers beneath him.

The prince pinched the bridge of his nose, his heart racing with growing anger. “First of all,” Roman began, trying to keep his composure. “I do not have time for an adventure. Secondly, Even if I did have time for an adventure, I certainly wouldn’t bring you. Lastly-” Roman puffed up his chest and cleared his throat. “YOU NEARLY KILLED ME LAST TIME!” He screamed at the top of his lungs. Good thing the door had closed or a knight could have come crashing in.

Remus rolled his eyes while muttering. “Oh please!” He snapped. “The only reason you nearly died is because you didn’t see good ol’ Morningstar coming.” His statement earned him another glare from a pissed off Roman. “Besides~” Remus continued as he began fidgeting with one of the papers. “You probably won’t die this time. If that’s what you’re so worried about. Ya’know, one of these days you’re gonna have to come to terms with the whole possibly getting killed thing and being buried six feet underground. Without your boyfriend, that old man you call dad, that weird other father figure who can’t take a joke. . .”

“Remus, get out.” Roman ordered, his caramel eyes burning with repressed rage.

“Aw, you don’t want your good old brother around? Fine then!” Remus scoffed as he jumped off the desk with a little skip. He dramatically flipped his cape as a way to imitate his unbearable twin while moving towards the door. “By the way, have fun with the nightmares tonight, brother.” He chirped all too cheerily before skipping out the door in an excited jaunt.

What a shame that Roman didn’t want to join him on his galavanting. They would’ve had such a fun time. . . Oh well! More mischief for Remus then!

The duke scrambled down the hallway towards the kitchen where he knew there was a doorway out to the private grounds of the palace. From there, he could easily make his escape through a small cranny in the stone wall and he was home free for the rest of the week!

A few of the kitchen workers briefly glanced at Remus as he entered and respectively kept their distance. First of all, he was a health hazard even existing in the same space as food, and second of all, they didn’t want to upset him. The last time Remus got upset was with the palace librarian, Logan. They had gotten into some sort of disagreement, but Remus being Remus, the argument ended with a blow to the poor teacher’s head. That is the story of how Remus got banned from the library and Logan’s presence.

Remus continued onward, finally finding his way out of the kitchen and into the private grounds. (Much to the cooks’ relief.) He weaved through kept flowers, occasionally plucking a bud off of its stem and stomaching it to see how it tasted. By the time he reached the stone wall, he had eaten three roses which tasted oddly like honey, two lilacs which had a minty freshness, and his personal favorite which was a hybrid sunflower which strangely had the flavor of chicken gone bad. He noted down to steal some of those hybrid sunflowers later when the gardeners weren’t around to yell at him.

Soon enough, he stood in front of the stone wall. He inspected it closely with a tilted head, thinking of all the mayhem that could happen if he decided to destroy this thing right here and now. Either everything could go wrong or nobody would notice. Eh. It wasn’t worth it if nobody noticed. With that, Remus found the familiar hole, barely big enough for a man to squeeze through and wiggled his body into it, only to pop out on the other side with a few scratches and a single drop of blood. “I am the newborn child wizard!” Remus cried triumphantly as he jumped to his feet and charged off into the woods.


	2. I’m Here, I’m Queer, and I’m Filled Existential Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus is setting up camp for the night, but he stumbles across a new visitor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idk what I'm doing, man.

Remus trotted on the dirt path, his slightly heeled boots pounding the ground with unchecked confidence while his arms swung at his sides. He kicked away leaves and twigs, laughing as the poor bugs around that scattered for shelter. Tsk. This was fun. He wasn’t even that far from the kingdom yet. He still had a ways to go before he reached that haunted village area, about maybe a three day’s walk. Maybe two if he was running non-stop. Elve’s had stamina, but Remus could barely make it over a fence some days and he wanted to conserve his energy for any possible fights. Oh! A fight sounded fun! He could swing Morningstar around and whack someone in the head until they’re on the ground bleeding out with their skull caved in. As dark as it was, Remus loved the idea and it had him on the edge of excitement for the rest of the evening.

The duke continued through the night, listening to the wolves howl and crickets chirp their evening melodies. While he traveled, he had found some blueberries and was munching on one, though he was sure that one wasn’t a berry since it was much more bitter than the others. It had tasted like iron filings or like poison. Was it bad that he knew what poison tastes like? Regardless, Remus was making progress towards the village. He had also ditched the path to get there faster and to get an unexpected adrenaline rush when he realized that a pack of hungry wolves was chasing after him. A few hours later, Remus had a new pelt drying out on his back as he mosied along through the woodwork.

“Hm, I’d say another few hours and then I’m there!” Remus chattered to himself as he played with his dagger, fidgeting with the blade between his fingers. “Maybe there’ll be gold and treasures just waiting to be plucked! More things for my hoard back at the palace. I should really move that before Roman finds it. Surely he’ll try to take it for himself.” The duke scoffed as he jumped over a fallen log.

“Rest assured, brother! You shall never find my valuables, nor will you find my perfume!” Remus cried into the trees as he picked up the pace. Before he knew it, Remus had broken into a run. He nearly lost his pants in the process as all the extra weight of his supplies and weaponry threatened to pull down his trousers. He fixed this problem by holding the belt loops while he ran. It was awkward, but Remus didn’t care nor did he have time to worry about appearances! He had an abandoned village to explore!

The duke rushed forwards and before he knew it, he had broken out of the trees into a small clearing, on the other end sat a degrading wall. Vines and crawling plants twisted around the brickwork while flowers marked the peak of the massive stone wall that stood at least 20 feet. What was it with civilizations and their walls? Remus fearlessly approached the wall, taking note of the scorched stone before completely ignoring it. He began searching for some hole in the barrier that he could wiggle through, since each brick probably weighed a good 150 pounds, not to mention that they were glued in place from dried mortar and flaking paint. Remus would break his back just trying to move them. Wait, why move the bricks when he could move himself? Remus would climb over the wall! Work smarter not harder.

Remus changed his approach and began looking for footholes instead. With the wall being in such poor condition as it was, finding tiny nooks and crannies was easy and the thick vines could act as rope. Using this method, he delicately scaled the stone. One foot, five feet, 10 feet, 18 feet, and finally the full 20. The duke had reached the top with his lungs, arms and legs burning. Luckily, getting down was the easier part as he chucked his backpack down onto the other side, using it as a cushion for his own fall. “Woohoo! That was fun!” Remus cried as he got up and lightly dusted himself off.

The duke slightly turned his head and saw the buildings of the village not too far off. He could see overgrown gardens, crumblings roofs, but he was slightly surprised to see no livestock shuffling around. If people abandoned a village, usually they’d leave their livestock too and they’d either die or breed. Remus didn’t smell anything dead or decomposing, but he didn’t see anything living. It was somewhat suspicious.

Looking around the village some more, Remus stumbled across a well. He glanced over the side and was met with a pile of bones that were mountaining on top of eachother. Somehow, it didn’t smell rancid like Remus expected it to. That led him to believe that someone had picked the bones clean and put them there as a sort of disposal or garbage can. He continued looking though, despite the potential warnings of something dangerous in the area that could eat him for an early morning snack, he’ll be fine.

The entire area was desolate of life, aside from plants. The duke checked inside multiple crumbling houses, occasionally finding a tiny treasure trove of gold and other goodies in boxes or safe spaces. He also came across obnoxious spiders, but he’d just poke them with his dagger and move on with his uninterrupted pillaging. Remus spent a good majority of his day going through house after house until he saw red and purple painting the sky, which told him it was time to set up camp. The duke found a comfy spot next to an orchard and set up his old patchwork tent. It was green and stained from years of use and adventuring with dirt and blood and there were holes everywhere from mice chewing on the canvas fabric and moths looking for a midnight snack.

The duke shrugged at these minor inconveniences and promptly began collecting some sticks for a fire. It didn’t take long before the area around him and his campsite were glowing from the warmth of the tiny bonfire that Remus lit. Flames licked the air for oxygen to continue fueling itself while Remus watched on in morbid curiosity. “I could burn this entire place to the ground.” He whispered to himself, dark eyes hyper fixated on the dancing coals that popped and crackled beneath his gaze. Remus could hear the wind howling above him as trees shifted and danced the same choreography the fire was using, swaying back and forth hypnotically, drawing the duke in closer and closer until his mustache was singed at the tips. Remus only snapped out of it however when he began to hear the crickets (probably the only creature in the area) quietly chirping their evening melodies.

Remus may be somewhat demented, but he had an appreciation for nature and some of the things that lived in it. He especially liked fish, both eating them and watching them swim in tanks, a pond or the ocean. One of the duke’s favorites was octopuses, or octopi? Whatever, that didn’t matter, all that he cared for was the cool and grossly revolting appearance that an octopus had. Their skin was slimy and wet to the touch, and they had no bones, not to mention their brains were stretched out through their body. The only hard part about their body - Remus giggled under his breath - was their beak in one of the most unseenly places. When he tried to tell his brother these strange facts, Remus would simply be dismissed and told to go bother someone else with his gruesome and horrific facts and ideas which was hurtful.

“Be more like your brother, Remus.” Remus snarled in a mocking tone while pressing his hand to his chest. “Contribute good ideas, Remus! Shave that amazing facial hair, Remus! Go die in a pit and never come back, Re-” The words caught in his throat as his breath hitched. The duke’s hand fell back to his lap as tears began to roll down his cheeks. “Nobody appreciates my ideas.” He growled while looking up towards the abandoned village. “Nobody understands the appeal of a horde of dead zombies rising from the grave, or the liveliness that comes from drinking a bottle of perfume. Nobody understands what it is like to feel alive, free.”

For a long time, there was quiet in the abandoned town. The crickets had even disappeared and the only thing that could be heard was the crackling of the fire and Remus’ soft grumblings. Did his family even love him? Did they care if he suddenly disappeared, but never to return? Wait. . .Why did he even care? He owed them nothing, especially Roman. They didn’t deserve his presence or his contributive ideas to festivals or royal gatherings.

Remus was disturbed from his thoughts when he heard a soft and low hiss. He swiftly looked around, reaching for good old MorningStar which was propped up against the post of the lackluster tent. He firmly gripped it with both hands while getting to his feet, his heart racing all of a sudden as he prepared for an oncoming adrenaline rush.

Another hiss echoed through the campsite.

Remus caught the glint of scales from the firelight, as well as a slithering movement. It looked and sounded like a snake, but he had never seen a snake  _ that  _ big.

The duke continued gazing around, looking for his hunter that was obviously stalking his every move. He could hear branches shifting and fallen leaves crunching under the weight of this shaded beast as it gradually circled inwards around Remus.

“Show yourself, dumba**!” Remus cried out as he raised MorningStar over his shoulder before bringing it to the ground with a loud  _ thud! _ “I’m always open to a challenge.”

What happened next wasn’t exactly what Remus was expecting. After he had dropped MorningStar to the ground with his hands still firmly grasped on the handle, a beast had surged from the darkness into the light of the fire.

The creature had the lower half of a snake and the upper body of a man, still scaly mind you. Their scales were a mix of cyan and green and half of their face was predominantly covered in them. Remus could see two large incisors glinting in the dull light and a golden yellow eye paired with the scales on the half of their face. Remus also soon learned that their hands had sharp nails at the tips as five of them began to dig into his throat while the cyan green coils began to wrap around his body.

It was hard to breathe as Remus began to struggle under the constricting pressure. He was about to die. The duke had never really feared death, since he had been in situations like this before, so he knew all the tricks to get an opponent off of you.

Instinctively, Remus wiggled his hand free and grabbed a handful of dirt. Before the beast could stop him, he threw the said handful of dirt right into the monster’s eyes. This was followed by a loud screech as the beast loosened their coils on Remus’ body allowing him to jump back up and defend himself. Plus, the claws were out of his throat so he wasn’t losing that much blood, or maybe it was the other way around. Regardless, he snatched up MorningStar and ran at his attacker, lifting the weapon above his head before letting it come crashing down onto the monster’s chest.

Another screech shook the surrounding areas as the beast fell over onto its back close to the fire. MorningStar was planted firmly in their chest as blood flowed from the new wound, drenching the ground and staining their scales a shade of crimson.

Remus stood over the beast, struggling to catch his breath. It took a few seconds to clear his head, but when the Duke came too, he finally got to see a more detailed look at his hunter. They were a naga, long and slender with scales head to tail. They wore a ragged piece of cloth over their shoulders with a sort of sash around their waist, and their hair was unkempt and unclean but appeared to be a dirty blonde. He had a strong jawline, sharp eyes, and strong nose with scars across his chest that was visible through the blood. But when his eyes flickered opened his eyes again, Remus thought he’d pass out.

They were absolutely beautiful. One eye was a shade of amber mixed with sapphire and the other eye was a pure glittery gold with a slitted pupil that glistened in the firelight. It made Remus’ heart jump as he stared down at the naga.

_ Well, fu**. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this was good?


	3. Well, oof.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm too lazy to write a summary.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's kind of late! I got busy with other projects, but here it is. I hope it meets your expectations,

_What do I do?!_ Remus thought frantically as he stood over the dying naga at his feet. It didn’t occur to him once that he could’ve died during that encounter and that this thing was a monster and a menace to his adventure. But he was so hot! Remus had to do something! That something was grabbing a health potion from his bag and shoving it down the naga’s throat. (After removing MorningStar of course.)

The handsome beast was still gasping for air as the red syrup ran down his throat and his insides began to feel warm, like they were on fire and everything was burning from the inside out. A look of confusion, fear and anger crossed the monster’s face, mixed with plenty of pain, but that pain soon began to die away and he could breathe again within a few minutes. He opened his mismatched eyes and was met with the man that he had just attacked.

This close, he could see blood around his windpipe where he attempted to grab the elf. The beast was still confused as his eyes moved to the stranger’s face. He was kind of repulsive to say the least, but had a sort of dignity about himself. The monster had never seen eyes so green and vibrant, masking the man’s cunning wit and street smarts of an avid adventurer that he saw in battle. His clothing also hid the fact that he was much stronger than he looked and his style sense was strangely creative and outgoing. Lots of green.

“Ah! You’re awake!” The duke cried, his emerald eyes brightening with relief and excitement as he crouched over the naga. “I thought I definitely killed you.”

The naga narrowed his eyes glancing between the fire and the duke processing everything he had just taken in. He opened his mouth, but all that came out was a quiet groan as his head flopped back onto the dirt ground.

“Hey! Be careful! I only had one health potion on hand and I’m quite sure that Nerdy Wolverine would not appreciate me stealing another one from his stash. I already got away as is without a sword in my back or a hound on my butt.” Remus huffed as he dramatically flipped his brunette hair. It was very fluffy, with an odd streak of gray in his bangs that continuously found their way into his enticing eyes.

The naga groaned again, still feeling the effects of the potion as it worked its magic on his internal injuries. He could feel part of his lungs still knitting back together and his ribcage was still uncomfortably stiff and aching. There was also the dried blood flaking on his scales, meaning he’d have to have a bath later if this guy didn’t decide to kill him again first. Finally, the beast was able to spit out a singular query. “Why?” He hissed.

“What?” Remus tilted his head like an oversized puppy. The duke still didn’t seem to notice that his neck looked like a murder mystery scene.

The naga hissed again as he slowly sat up. He sent a glare towards the duke, his shoulders hunched as he tore off the shawl that had been keeping his shoulders warm before it became drenched in blood and cold. “Why?” He repeated sharply, his long fangs glinting in the firelight.

Remus quickly scrambled back a bit, eyes widening with surprise like it was not obvious. He shook his head and regained his composure before jumping to his feet and bowing. “To save you, of course!” He chirped as he flashed the naga a smile of his own yellowed teeth. “Since it was my fault to begin with as I nearly clobbered you with good old MorningStar. Lovely thing, though now bathed in blood. That’s not the point though!” Remus chuckled before he could get sidetracked.

“Then what was the point in saving me?” The beast hissed in return as he slowly reared up on his long snakey tail to appear threatening. He could go for his throat again and have a meal by morning if he could keep the duke distracted long enough.

“Well, I understand that I may have been trespassing on your territory, but-” Remus held up a finger as he turned and reached into his pocket. Less than a moment later, he held up a handful of dried bacon bits which were preserved in salt and flavored with seasoning. “I give you this offering, all mighty naga.” He was avoiding the question, but the sight of the bacon bits made the naga’s stomach growl.

Claws outstretched, the naga quickly snatched up the bacon bits, sniffing them skeptically. His form receded as he became distracted by the flavorful smells. Wait! Why was he accepting food from a stranger who literally just tried to kill him five minutes before, and where have these bacon bits even been? There was a few seconds of silence before the naga hesitated and shoved the bacon bits into his mouth. Who cared where they were from, it was food!

The duke grinned ear to ear and went to his pack sitting beside the beaten and worn tent. “I have some more!” He said triumphantly before coming back with a sack filled with all sorts of dried foods. The naga could smell it through the weaved material and it was a struggle to not dive instantly for the bag. “Give it to me.” The beast ordered as he held out a clawed and scaly hand.

Without resistance, Remus handed over the bag and the other gave him a look of skepticism. He opened the bag and began picking through the contents, throwing bits aside that either smelled truly rancid or appeared to be fruit. What the beast wanted was the meat and jerky which were located closer to the bottom. Once he was satisfied with his share, he tossed the bag back at Remus’ feet and began to back away.

“Hey, where are you going?” Remus wondered as he took a step closer to the naga.

“I’m leaving to get away from my attacker.” The naga snarled in response.

“Okay, first of all, rude. I gave you food. Secondly, you attacked me first so you’re just being a hypocrite there. You know what? It’s perfectly fine! How about you stay the night at my campsite?”

The naga raised an eyebrow, clearly distrusting the duke. “And why would I accept that offer?” He growled, his coils twisting and shifting around him like a fleshy train of carts.

The duke paused, thinking of an answer. Why should the naga accept his offer? They both nearly killed each other and he had already clawed through his dried food stash. There wasn’t much left at the campsite that the naga would find enticing, except maybe the campfire. “It’s warm!” He finally exclaimed, pointing to the licking flames of the burning fire. “I uh, was also intending to go hunting in a few minutes beyond the village to pick up some food like a deer. Shouldn’t take too long. You can have most of it!” Remus forced another smile, this one very hopeful.

They stared at one another for a long second.

“No.” The naga growled flatly as he turned away and began slithering into the darkness.

“Wait. What? What do you mean, no?” Remus asked as he began running after the beast, but he had disappeared into the darkness. The duke grumbled and took a few steps backwards towards his camp. Great, now even monsters were denying his company!

He plopped back on his butt next to the fire and the blood soaked grass with his pack in his hands. Pulling the bag open the duke dug through its contents once again to find a glass bottle filled with perfume. He had made it himself during his time in the gardens. He’d find the nastiest smelling flowers and plants and stuff them all into one horrific smelling perfume mixed with a heavy dose of decontamination alcohol and vodka. Taking a few swings, he gazed into the fire as he swallowed the divine liquid.

“To myself.” He grunted, raising the bottle towards the fire, “For screwing it all up again and nearly dying in the process.” Another drink from the smelly bottle wafted into his nose. “I’ll find him tomorrow.” The duke assured himself, his heart pounding with the thought of seeing those golden scales in the sunlight.

 _Oh, that’s a thought._ Remus smirked, but it only got better when he saw blood stained claws in his imagination. He didn’t care if it was his own blood or someone else’s, but he hoped it would be his blood. The duke could remember seeing those deadly eyes locked with his and his heart only continued to race faster. The way they sparkled like poison on a hot summer day and shimmered like the ripple in a pond. Remus wasn’t sure if the perfume was making his stomach churn with delight or the images of the beast. He declared it was both.


End file.
